Have you ever heard of him? Me neither.
In 2022, I went to Ireland. For half a day, I walked through St. Patricks Cathedral and hung out at the grounds. One thing that struck me — just how many sculptures and art pieces were in that cathedral.
The statues were so detailed, so intricate, so lifelike. Under each statue, or beside it, would be a dedication or inscription to the person.
This one caught my attention, this statue and inscription for George Ogle. Why?
I stopped to read this one because:
- It seemed like it had a typo in the header (HON- BLE, probably an abbreviation for Honorable)
- It was so long.
- It felt so over-the-top in its language.
It felt like someone was asked to come up with the highest possible praise of a human being, and at the same time, use the largest words possible.
Now before I share it with you, I want you to know:
I ran it through the Hemingway app just to be certain I wasn’t off base. Without the dates at the end, it says it is 258 words, but only 5 sentences. That’s over 50 words per sentence. All are considered “very hard to read.” Grade-level for reading: post-graduate level. It’s the first thing I’ve ever put in Hemingway at that high of level.
I’ve read post-graduate books before. They aren’t for the faint of heart. Neither is this dedication to George.
Give yourself a challenge and see if you get something out of this.
Just take a look at it with me for a minute.
But once you get past the difficulty of it, and you actually process what they’re saying, it sounds like George Ogle was an admirable guy.
- “Incorruptible integrity.”
- “Scrupulous sense of honour.”
- “Shed a lustre on every society in which he moved.”
In fact, I hope people write things like this about me.
It doesn’t have to be so over-the-top. But something better than, “He was a good dude.” “Great guy.”
When people write something like this about you, you obviously left an impression. “Enthroned in the hearts of all.”
People commissioned a statue for him, then wrote something like this for him. Wow.
Would people do that today?
Can you leave that kind of legacy today?
Such that a guy born 170+ years later, seeing the statue over 200+ years later, might actually pay attention, look you up, and wonder what other contributions you made to humanity. Wonder what your life amounted to.
That’s what legacy is all about.
Omer Redden 